Authority: IC 16-19-3-4; IC 16-41-31-5

Affected: IC 16-41-31

Sec. 37. (a) Tableware shall be washed, rinsed, and sanitized after each use.

(b) To prevent cross-contamination, kitchenware and food contact surfaces of equipment shall be washed, rinsed, and sanitized after each use and following any interruption of operations during which time contamination may have occurred.

(c) Where equipment and utensils are used for the preparation of potentially hazardous foods, the food contact surfaces of equipment and utensils shall be washed, rinsed, and sanitized.

(d) The food contact surfaces of all cooking equipment shall be kept free of encrusted grease deposits and other accumulated soil.

(e) Nonfood contact surfaces of equipment shall be cleaned as often as is necessary to keep the equipment free of accumulation of dust, dirt, food particles, and other debris.

(f) Cloths used for wiping food spills on tableware, such as plates or bowls being served to the consumer, shall be clean, dry, and used for no other purpose.

(g) For manual washing, rinsing, and sanitizing of utensils and equipment, a sink with not fewer than two (2) compartments shall be provided and used. Sink compartments shall be large enough to permit the accommodation of the equipment and utensils, and each compartment of the sink shall be supplied with hot and cold potable, running water. Fixed equipment and utensils and equipment too large to be cleaned in sink compartments shall be washed and sanitized manually.

(h) A method for the proper handling of soiled utensils prior to washing, and for cleaned utensils following sanitizing, shall be provided and located so as not to interfere with the proper use of the dishwashing facilities.

(i) Equipment and utensils shall be preflushed or prescraped and, when necessary, presoaked to remove food particles and soil.

(j) Sinks shall be cleaned prior to use.

(k) Except for fixed equipment and utensils too large to be cleaned in sink compartments, manual washing, rinsing, and sanitizing shall be conducted in the following sequence for three (3) compartment sinks:

1. (1) Equipment and utensils shall be thoroughly washed in the first compartment with a hot detergent solution that is kept clean.
2. (2) Equipment and utensils shall be rinsed free of detergent and abrasives with clean water in the second compartment.
3. (3) Equipment and utensils shall be sanitized in the third compartment according to one (1) of the methods included in subsection (m)(1) through (m)(5).

(l) When a two (2) compartment sink is utilized for utensil and equipment washing, one (1) of the following two (2) methods shall be used:

1. (1) Equipment and utensils shall be thoroughly cleaned in the first compartment with a hot detergent solution that is kept clean and rinsed free of detergent with clean water in the second compartment, then the first compartment shall be drained and refilled for sanitization in accordance with subsection (m)(1) through (m)(5).
2. (2) Equipment and utensils shall be thoroughly cleaned in the first compartment with a detergent sanitizer solution that is kept clean and shall be sanitized in the second compartment in hot water in accordance with subsection (m)(1), or with a solution containing the same detergent sanitizer in accordance with subsection (m)(2) through (m)(5). Sanitizers or detergent sanitizers shall be of the type which do not require a freshwater rinse.

(m) The food contact surfaces of all equipment and utensils shall be sanitized by:

1. (1) immersion for at least one-half (1/2) minute in clean, hot water at a temperature of at least one hundred seventy degrees Fahrenheit (170°F);
2. (2) immersion for at least one (1) minute in a clean solution containing at least fifty (50) parts per million of available chlorine as a hypochlorite and at a temperature of at least seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit (75°F);
3. (3) immersion for at least one (1) minute in a clean solution containing at least twelve and five-tenths (12.5) parts per million of available iodine and at a pH at which the efficacy has been demonstrated to be effective by the manufacturer and at a temperature of at least seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit (75°F);
4. (4) immersion in quaternary ammonium compound solutions that are of a concentration indicated by the manufacturers' label instructions, and shall be used only in water with five hundred (500) parts per million hardness or less;
5. (5) immersion in a clean solution containing any other chemical sanitizing agent approved by the Indiana department of health that will provide the equivalent bactericidal effect of a solution containing at least fifty (50) parts per million of available chlorine as a hypochlorite at a temperature of at least seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit (75°F) for one (1) minute; or
6. (6) rinsing, spraying, or swabbing with a chemical sanitizing solution of at least twice the strength required for that particular sanitizing solution under subdivisions (2), (3), and (5) in the case of equipment too large to sanitize by immersion.

(n) When hot water is used for sanitizing, the following facilities shall be provided and used:

1. (1) An integral heating device or fixture installed in or under the sanitizing compartment of the sink capable of maintaining the water at a temperature of at least one hundred seventy degrees Fahrenheit (170°F).
2. (2) A numerically scaled indicating thermometer, accurate to plus or minus three degrees Fahrenheit (±3°F), convenient to the sink for frequent checks of water temperature.
3. (3) Dish baskets of such size and design to permit complete immersion of the tableware, kitchenware, and equipment in the hot water.

(o) When chemicals are used for sanitization, they shall not have concentrations higher than those specified by the manufacturer, and a test kit or other device that accurately measures the parts per million concentration of the solution shall be provided and used.

(p) Cleaning and sanitizing may be done by spray-type or immersion dishwashing machines or by any other type of machine or device if it is demonstrated that it thoroughly cleans and sanitizes equipment and utensils. These machines and devices shall be properly installed and maintained in good repair.

(q) Drain boards or dish tables shall be provided and be of adequate size for the proper handling of soiled utensils prior to washing and for cleaned utensils following sanitization and shall be so located and constructed as not to interfere with the proper use of the dishwashing facilities.

(r) Equipment and utensils shall be flushed or scraped and, when necessary, soaked to remove food particles and soil prior to being washed in a dishwashing machine.

(s) Machines (single tank, stationary rack, door-type machines, and spray-type glass washers) using chemicals for sanitization may be used provided that:

1. (1) the temperature of the wash water shall not be less than one hundred twenty degrees Fahrenheit (120°F);
2. (2) the wash water shall be kept clean;
3. (3) chemicals added for sanitization purposes shall be automatically dispensed;
4. (4) utensils and equipment shall be exposed to the final chemical sanitizing rinse in accordance with manufacturers' specifications for time and concentration;
5. (5) the chemical sanitizing rinse water temperature shall not be less than seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit (75°F) nor less than the temperature specified by the machine's manufacturer;
6. (6) chemical sanitizers used shall meet requirements for safe usage; and
7. (7) a test kit or other device that accurately measures the parts per million concentration of the solution shall be available and used.

(t) Machines using hot water for sanitizing may be used provided that wash water and rinse water shall be kept clean, and water shall be maintained at a temperature of not less than one hundred sixty degrees Fahrenheit (160°F) as measured by a maximum registering thermometer, thermolabel (temperature-sensitive tape), or other accepted method on the utensil contact surface.

(u) All dishwashing machines shall be thoroughly cleaned at least once a day or more often when necessary to maintain them in a satisfactory operating condition.

(v) After sanitization, all equipment and utensils shall be air dried.

(Indiana Department of Health; 410 IAC 7-15.5-37; filed Jul 29, 1992, 10:00 a.m.: 15 IR 2578; readopted filed Jul 11, 2001, 2:23 p.m.: 24 IR 4234; readopted filed May 22, 2007, 1:44 p.m.: 20070613-IR-410070141RFA; readopted filed Sep 11, 2013, 3:19 p.m.: 20131009-IR-410130346RFA; readopted filed Nov 13, 2019, 3:14 p.m.: 20191211-IR-410190391RFA; errata filed Jul 28, 2021, 9:35 a.m.: 20210811-IR-410210313ACA; readopted filed Nov 14, 2025, 11:18 a.m.: 20251210-IR-410240588RFA)